we will continue the discussion on budget talks at 8:20. >> good morning, everyone. here are your headlines. the washington post reports that the nsa is gathering nearly 5 billion records per day on the whereabouts of cell phones around the world. the documents given to the post by edward snowden. u.s. officials say the collection is lawful. around the country today, fast food rest word -- workers will walk off the job as part of the continued push to raise minimum wage and secure the rights to unionize. yesterdaysent letters

in support of higher wages to the fast food companies. president obama pushed for increase in the minimum wage yesterday. want to hear from all of you this morning. are you able to move up the economic ladder? dial (202)under 30, 585-3880. 50, (202) between 31- 585-3881 (202) 585-388. 50, (202) 585- 3882. you can also post your comments on twitter or facebook. let me show you a little bit of president obama's speech. it was from the center for american progress. [video clip] >> for one thing, these trends are bad for our economy.

one study finds that growth is more fragile and recession is more frequent in countries with greater inequality. .hat makes sense when families have less to spend, businesses have fewer customers. households rack up greater mortgage and credit card debt. topentrated wealth at the will not result in broadly based consumer spending that drives our economy and with less regulation, it may contribute to risky speculative bubbles. rising inequality and declining mobility are bad for families and social cohesion. not just because we tend to trust our institutions us, but studies show we actually tend to test -- trust each other less. host: that was the president yesterday talking about income inequality.

toare turning to all of you get your stories. are you able to move up the economic ladder? we have the lines divided by age. start calling us now. you can put your comments on facebook or tweet us as well. a response from house speaker john boehner's spokesman. they promote government reliance rather than economic mobility. what are your thoughts on this? we will hear from nathaniel in california. how old are you and what is your story? span.r: thanks to c- i look forward to. as of now, i haven't been. i have been struggling to find work the last couple of years. it has been hard for myself and

some acquaintances of mine. the affordable care act, believe it or not, thank god it was recognized to be a deterrent for businesses to hire full-time because no one is hiring over 30 hours per week here in los angeles. things are picking up. i am really hopeful. i do have a comment about the fast food chains. the owners and the franchise iners and the boards -- believe that the owners of these mcdonald's, jack-in-the-box, these restaurants are making close to, i would say, 500% to 1000% on french fries. sakes, pay the people a couple of more dollars per hour. what is the level of greed with corporate, big business profits? host: do you think minimum wage

would help people move up the economic ladder? caller: absolutely. i'm 39 years old. when i started it was $4.25 per hour. now it is a dollars $.50 per hour. $8.50 per years -- hour. that is 20 years and only a 50% increase. how can someone afford to maintain a lifestyle and support themselves, especially renting at that wage? it is sad. host: did you make minimum wage before you lost your job? caller: no. fortunately i was making 10 times more than that. i have been put in my place. i have been looking for work

that i am over qualified for. but i would like to work. that is what americans are all about. hard work am a believe it or not. hard work and big hearts. host: what jobs are available for you that you are over qualified for? i'm specialized in a certain trade and a certain inustry which i have been for the last 20 years. from motion pictures to marketing for a vitamin company or working at the local in and out -- in n out. i look forward to it. i am humbled to accept the paycheck. i hope more americans get to work. host: joe in north dakota. caller: hello. i am a 55-year-old man. been -- [indiscernible]

the ethanol industry. when i fill out the application, you have to fill in your employment and the want to know what this drought period is. it is getting longer because the i have been- ostracized. they are treating us like slaves. we are americans. this is america. i am very upset about this. host: what should be done? caller: we should equalize the playing field. host: how do you do that? caller: you just do that, greta. what is your perspective? host: it doesn't matter. i am the moderator. caller: yes it does.

i would appreciate a neutral host on c-span. chairwhoever sits in this is the host. we try to moderate the conversation. bring you the other side. we try to let you know what the other side is saying if people are bringing you one side. back to our topic for the first ability to-- the move up the economic ladder. president obama talked about income inequality. here is what he proposes. he calls for eased rules for union organizers, passage of a ,udget with stimulus spending expanded government programs for children, and new antidiscrimination laws. that is in the wall street journal this morning about what he was proposing. on the fast food workers -- this

from the new york times business day section. but mary kay henry, the president of the service employees international union --

arguing against raising the minimum wage -- [video clip] it is a failure as an antipoverty program. most poor people don't work and are unaffected. are minimum-wage workers from families that earn multiple incomes. workers earnwage after minimum what -- more than minimum wage after one year on the job. of 2009, aboutlf 300,000 jobs were lost as the economy declined about 4% -- a big plunge. in the second half of the year, the economy grew rapidly.

host: that was the chief economist for the national federation of independent businesses. they put out that video. the debate takes place here over income inequality. president obama talked about that at the center for american progress. we are getting her thoughts. david in maryland. what is your story? -- for me,hink that i am able to move up. i think in this area the jobs are better. someone who is making minimum wage, i think it should be raised. from thehe comments organization that you mentioned. where another article

there was a millionaire or billionaire businessman who was saying that if you raise the minimum wage, it would be a stimulus to the economy because that money would go right back into the economy, plus less people would be collecting food stamps and so it would be like a jolt into ways to the economy. i tend to agree with that. host: here is another argument that you might agree with from the new york times.

i then in shreveport, louisiana. -- ivan in shreveport louisiana. caller: i think they should raise it. the price of gas has gone up. people's wages have gone down. it is cheaper to be on food stamps and to lay around. what else is good in life? what is your economic situation? caller: it is not that good. it is bad. we work on minimum wage. append to the next week or two. -- pend to the next week or two. it is sad. host: what is the minimum wage? caller: i am making nine dollars per hour.

it is not right. i speak up for the people because they want to eat off the lines and you can't blame the people. you can't blame the people because they don't have the proper food at home. ar government should have balance across the line. had i worked at at&t, they a living cost where everything was balanced. keep america balanced because if we don't keep it balanced, we are going downhill, downhill. we are going to be a third world country be cut -- before it is all over with. i love america. host: the minimum wage in the wheezy and is $7 per hour. the federal minimum wage to $7.25.

you can see how many times it has been raised since 1996. let's go to new york. noel. caller: i am retired. 62 years old. i think one of the problems here is that it is not so much minimum-wage, but the fact that there are no manufacturing jobs anymore. there are no blue-collar jobs. i worked at a company for 33 years. i consider myself lucky in that sense. what i was a young kid of 18 or 19, in my county, there were so many manufacturing jobs that you could pick and choose. you could walk to the door and apply at that time and get jobs. the problem there is now these jobs -- these service jobs -- are considered full-time jobs are now considered -- they were considered step up spec then. i worked at the dishwasher before about the job where i was full-time.

-- before i was full-time. trade agreements with other countries, the jobs are now in other countries. we are not a manufacturing state. we are a service industry. you cannot exist as a country if you are not manufacturing. there were so many jobs. it is amazing. this would not be a subject to be discussed. i feel for everybody. myself as an older person. i feel for what is going on, but i think there needs to be a move back to more productive manufacturing. detroit was destroyed. there is no businesses there anymore. there is no real structure anymore. there is no real manufacturing industry. without that -- host: i was going to ask you

what you think should be done. caller: the government has stepped in. the government needs to step out. we need to allow private pointrise -- maybe a good was to entice these businesses to come back with tax incentives, to come back to the united states and start building our manufacturing base and get these lewd college jobs. are thelar jobs foundation of this country. there are very little now. back,if those jobs came -- in order for blue-collar jobs -- the argument for raising the minimum wage -- if you had those types of jobs -- for a person to survive on a blue-collar wage, what would it have to be? jobs -- ase-collar industry becomes better and better, the incentives and the

increase in income will come along with that. that is what i am saying. there are no opportunities. the young people are restricted as to what they can do. if you have just a high school education -- i only had a high school education. the jobs were there when i came out of high school. it was not i thought. a kid with a high school education is pretty much in a deadlocked situation now. if he can even get a job. that is what needs to be done in my personal opinion. host: david in florida. caller: good morning. i believe that you are totally impartial and the way you do your job. thank you. i agree with a lot of what this gentleman was saying with regard to manufacturing. they are talking about raising the minimum wage to stimulate the economy.

what are they consider stimulating the economy? putiding jobs for kids to something on the shelf at walmart? we don't make anything. it goes back to china. as far as the raising of the minimum wage, what people fail to realize is that when they raise it here and there -- to the average guy getting it, it is not that much money in his pocket every week. collectively throughout the nation, that is a whole lot more money that the government can tax and take from you. if they raise it, that is more money in their coffers that they can burn away on stupid things. put you on public assistance or some government program, they have just created a voting base. vote for me or you will go hungry. and then obama with this disparity in the wages and whatnot -- that is more of a divide and conquer. it is ridiculous. this guy has not united this

country in any way whatsoever. he has driven a wedge in any which way he can. i hope people will wake up and realize what he is doing. host: how old are you? caller: 50. host: what is your economic mobility? caller: my wages have stagnated. i am fortunate that i have steady work. when people talk about the cost of living, the price of an apple, the price of bread, people need to realize what is happening is that the federal reserve -- which is not federal -- is printing 85 billion dollars every month and dumping it into the economy. when you print money out of thin air -- i will give you an example -- after the first world war germany was held responsible to pay reparations to europe. they printed it when they didn't have it. by 1923, an ounce of gold was 85 billion german marks. host: i will leave it there.

angel in bel air, ohio. hello? you are on the air. let me move on. massachusetts. 42 on pearl turning harbor day. i find it very difficult to climb up the economic ladder. i am a person who was a part of the welfare reform. i got myself off of welfare, i earned and associates, a bachelors degree, up to a masters degree. i worked two full-time jobs. even though i put in my application for upper management jobs, i am denied that.

i have witnessed that other people without degrees have earned that position that i am qualified and competent to do. governmenteve that should really focus on the people who go to school and earn a degree because we have to pay back our student loans. it does not make sense for us to spend all of this money -- iao $160,000 --i owe and yet if i try to become a manager or executive, i am not going to be given an interview. if you look at the organizational chart, on the top level, it is all whites. on the entry-level, it is next -- mixed, but some of us have degrees.

that is why feel that some state agencies are ineffective because they keep hiring people who cannot do the job and their incompetent and they refuse to hire people with degrees so that the job can get them correctly. host: you have a four-year degree? caller: i have a masters degree in business administration. host: but cannot get an interview? -- cannot getjob an interview. i have two full-time jobs because i have to take care of my family. they are to entry-level jobs. i have had this discussion with my employer asking, why is the top of the organization all whites? they can't find one minority person to fill that position? i was told something ludicrous. [indiscernible]

here i am crying for a job and i was even told i was going to be given an interview and i was not given an interview. host: let me go to some tweets. we will keep taking her phone calls about whether or not you are able to move up the economic ladder. president obama gave a speech yesterday. first, some headlines for you. the front page of usa today --

that is the front page of usa today. front-page wall street journal. --the president joe biden's vice president joe biden posture overseas. vice president joe biden's trip overseas -- more to come on that. with you at the top. the nsa is collecting 5 billion records per day on the whereabouts of cell phones in the world. this comes from edward snowden. they also got confirmation from u.s. intelligence officials.

the washington post editorial onrd weighs in sequestration, which could happen if a budget deal is not reached by december 13 and the government has to pass a continuing resolution. post says it is bad medicine to keep cutting the national institute of health. basic research funding and biomedicine in the united states in the field today is exciting and dynamic.

we will be at the national institute of health tomorrow at the washington journal. our whole show will be dedicated to talking to the folks who run the different research units out there. we'll talk to several doctors. we look forward to your phone calls, tweets, and e-mails about that. we have also learned that progress is being made on to legislative fronts up on capitol hill -- the budget negotiators andcoming closer to a deal also negotiators for a five-year farm bill are getting closer as well. great progress being reported. we will talk about that next with a texas republican, randy neugebauer. that is coming up at 7:45 eastern. back to our topic. income inequality. stuart in oklahoma. caller: i am 51. host: what is your story?

caller: when i got out of college -- host: we are listening. caller: when i got out of college, people's dreams were to get a job, retire, building home, have a family. host: ok. you have to listen through your phone, not the tv. , the american people -- these political candidates are telling us one thing and then when they get in office, they start doing other things which put us out of work. faced with trying to reinvent our own lives that we thought we invented when we went to the lifecycle of education leads to jobs lead to future leads to families.

it makes it very difficult for people to bring themselves up by their bootstraps when you don't have any boots anymore. we have been misled by people that we trusted and it is up to , getto come to the table business out of government, and start understanding the needs of the people in this country and start moving toward a direction that will provide a solid base for any individual to have the opportunity to have the understanding that they can gain what they want out of life by moving forward. host: here is an e-mail from felix.

you can e-mail us at c-span.org. speaking of policies, john boehner tweeting this out. the house passes another small business bill. it will join dozens of others waiting action and the democratic led senate. thatpeaker tweeting yesterday. let's go to iran in poughkeepsie, new york. -- to ron in poughkeepsie, new york. caller: i am 48. 9/11, everybody was united and everything. rich, poor, we was all, yes, usa. now we are all divided. because of this rich and poor planet division. -- clan division. republicans avoid the question

of helping the poor. the question is -- why are we politicians who have no interest in the poor? people who are trying to make it out of the poor situation to a better situation? you know? that is a problem. we let people that tell us things, but they don't show or do anything that proves their sincerity. host: does that include the minimum wage? caller: minimum wage needs to go up, yes, definitely. i mean, come on. you can't sit around for 20-30 years on the same pay scale. that is not logical. host: let me show you and the president -- what the president

had to say yesterday. [video clip] >> if you work hard, you should be able to support your family. we all know the arguments that have been used against a higher minimum wage. some say it hurts minimum-wage workers, that businesses will be less likely to hire. there is no solid evidence. research shows it raises incomes for low-wage workers and boost short-term economic growth. [laughter] [applause] we raisegue that if the minimum wage, companies will pass those costs to consumers. a growing course of businesses argue differently. there are extraordinary companies in america that provide decent wages, salaries, and benefits and deliver a great product to consumers.

childcare and sick leave at a company in north carolina. plans and retirement strives to cultivate a good work balance. there were companies that do right by their workers. they recognize paying a decent wage actually helps the bottom line. president making an economic argument for raising the minimum wage yesterday. the washington times' opinion piece yesterday argues this.

we are getting your thoughts this morning. are you able to move up the ladder? ron in virginia. how old are you? caller: i am 35. i am an african-american. i think there are plenty of opportunities to climb up the economic ladder. i grew up in a single-parent home. my parents did not pay for college. i have an undergraduate engineering degree, a master's degree. one of the things i have seen is that a lot of americans are not really prepared to do what is necessary to climb the economic ladder. every childto have have a cell phone. every child has an ipad.

people are spending money, consuming things they do not need. the economic ladder is a combination of your income and out build. i think that has to be a part of the equation as well. host: caroline in mississippi. how old are you? turned 74.t i have the same birthday as harry reid. [laughter] we are as different as two people can be. host: [laughter] what is your story? theer: i appreciated previous remarks from the callers on the articles you were showing. i agree with your article and the last on him and who called. -- gentleman who called. he's jobs at walmart are not supposed to be career jobs. these are supposed to be entry jobs. raising the minimum wage will kill more jobs and keep more

young people from being able to get a job at all. school.ed high later on, i sent myself to college and i was 30 before i got out with my bachelors, but i continued on and got my masters also with no loans. of course, that was many years ago. it is foolish for people to make these humongous loans. they need to work and go with a minimum of help. i know college and textbooks at all cost a fortune now. i want to go back to my dad briefly. a couple of things i want to hit you with. he was one of the children of the depression. dayas making $.50 per plowing.

when he was working for the ccc. theas developed or roosevelt years to make jobs for the young people. the main thing they did was built state parks around the country. you can still see many of those state parks and some of the original cabins today. my dad and two uncles learned construction skills doing this, which they retained for their lifetime. my dad was the superintendent over large jobs, building hospitals, schools. so did by uncles. they have been doing this deal work and supervising a 30 story building. host: larry in nicholson, georgia. caller: hello.

is thatthought on it nominate people can get full- time work, as far as the kids. if each of the minimum wage from seven dollars per hour to $10 floor.r, it raises the the value of the dollar is no better. i worked at jobs -- when i was to $4 per hour. so there was no advancement. if you keep moving the target up, there is no advancement. on a lighter note, congress is now allowed to say merry christmas. runs policiesthat

allow them to include holiday greetings and official mail to constituents. in official mail to constituents. also, at the white house, they are celebrating the holidays and military families were allowed to come to the white house yesterday to see all of the decorations. this is a story in the washington post.

there you can see the video. michelle obama asking her if she was ok. houset the white yesterday. back to our question. andrew is in pennsylvania. what is your story? caller: yes, how are you doing? host: doing well. go ahead. caller: you look very beautiful this morning. i want to tell you that by the way. in to seecalling the main problem -- the main problem is the fed basically. it is not the minimum wage that is supposed to be going up. it is creating more jobs here in america.

politicians, these democrats, republicans, is not really coming together. not really caring about moving forward with the economy. which is kind of scary in a sense. the most important thing for us as human society or for us as americans is to stay positive, to stay positive. there will be a day when everything -- the light is coming on. in the sense that, there will be a day that we will overcome that in that sense that we will come together, be united, have a conscience to grow in our spirituality, to grow even more stronger in that sense. host: damien in new york. caller: i am 65. color what the previous

talked about happens. but what i would like to see so much thet changing of the minimum wage, but to imbue more mobility in the system where people can start at the minimum wage and get off it. have a career where your life depends on the minimum wage is no life. i am an employer. i have not employed anybody at the minimum wage in the last 10 years. not that it is that much higher. it is a seasonal job and it is part time ended his high school young people. host: you pay more than minimum wage? smart -- we start most people attend dollars per hour. -- at $10 per hour. it is not people who are looking to support a family.

host: a tweet -- front page of the boston globe this morning. this is the headline on elizabeth warren. she has said repeatedly and now definitively yesterday that she will not run for the presidency. that is in the boston globe this morning. sanctions -- this is the foreign minister yesterday in an interview with al jazeera yesterday. the sanctions have failed utterly -- this is the reason he said.

this from the washington post. it also raised the prospect of a production war inside opec. they are trying to improve

iran's image with countries in the region. sanctionsnew round of as the white house is trying to broker this deal over the weekend on its nuclear program. is last on the conversation. let's go to belleville, ohio. caller: thank you. yes, the minimum wage was great back in 2010 and was able to live comfortably. march 2013, i have been unemployed and unable to gainfully get employment. of course, the pay and is trying i find a job is just like -- put over 300 resumes out and either you get overqualified or

-- i have limitations from an accident but i am still able to that what illfully -- toid for $15 in 2010 get the job, it is impossible because when the economy dropped left the limited jobs because now they want you to work three people's jobs for the price of $9 per hour or $10 per hour. to get a job in ohio or other places i have tried, it has been impossible. i am in the midst of losing my home. by losing my home, the economy is going to go down, i will not be able to spend money. where do you go? rent is higher than what my house payment is. it is a cry out for jobs.

the factories have left the area. age is against us for office jobs. it is a battle. i have never been so far down so quickly. cry out because this economy is a mess. i have been a hard worker, a jack of all trades willing to learn anything and still i have not been able to gainfully get jobs. next our conversation up will focus on the five-year farm bill and negotiations for that. a big part of the farm bill is the food stamp row graham. we will talk with randy neugebauer, a republican from texas. later, we will discuss the pending budget deal between the house and senate. we will be right back.

>> friday on c-span, washington journal looks at the mission and role of the national institutes of health, starting live at 7:30 eastern. :30.:00, followed at 8 at 9:00, national cancer institute director.

at nine: 30, a look at the national institute of mental health among all with your calls and comments, live on c-span. >> from age eight, betty ford knew she wanted to do something with dance. plays and skits and to bennington, vermont, where she studied at the school of dance. these are some of her notecards from her spiral mode books where she kept notes. it is is her organizer. during this period, she carried this with her to vermont, back to grand rapids, off to new york, where she studied with martha graham and worked for the power's modeling agency, and then back to grand rapids again. in it you would find a whole host of things that you would find in just about any organizer. brochures on dance costumes, one

of her sketches of a costume for one of the dance routines she wanted to put on, here are choreography notes that she made four different dance routines. there is a whole wealth of material in here that talks about her love for dance and tell deeply she was involved in it especially in her early years. bettych our program on ford on our website, c- span.org/first ladies or see it saturday on c-span at 7:00 eastern. our series continues with rosalynn carter. >> washington journal continues. host: we are back with congressman randy neugebauer, a republican from texas. he sits on the house farm agriculture committee and a contrary for these negotiations over the five-year farm bill. thes begin with yesterday, principles got together here in washington.

the senate is not in session, but they came back to washington to meet with their house counterparts. what did you learn? fort: first of all, thanks having me. i think we're getting closer. i talked to chairman lucas. we keep closing in on that. we are working out a framework of where we go from here. i am optimistic that things are moving in the right direction. i think chairman lucas has done an outstanding job am a particularly in the house, of keeping this process moving forward. this is important that we get a five-year farm bill for american farmers and for families. host: why is it important? bill is a goodm steward of the american taxpayer's hard-earned money. it provides a valuable safety net for farmers and families. title and autrition title to provide a safety net to farmers and ranchers.

these are the people who were feeding the world literally. we export a lot of our food. it is an important part of our economy. it is an important part of our way of life. host: this has been an ongoing saga over this farm bill. back in january of this year, the congress extends the farm bill until september 30. senate passes the farm bill, house passes its own farm bill. what is holding up negotiations? guest: we have been working on it for over 2.5 years. we have had a number of hearings. bringing experts in, learning a little bit more about what is working, what is not working. then we went through the normal process here it we collect regular order in congress. going through the committee process. in the house and the senate. we took those to the floor. the first version of the house bill did not pass the house floor.

we divided the baby, so to speak, and did it into pieces. when you do regular order, we have allowed people to provide minutes. we have a lot of debate and discussion. i think we are closing in on getting a good farm bill. host: where will you come down on food stamps? the house republicans wanted $40 billion cut over 10 years. the senate, $4 billion. guest: first, let me say this. it was a lot of miscommunication about the food stamp program. none of the proposals, house or senate, would take food away from the people who actually need that assistance. i want to make that perfectly clear. what it does do, it makes sure that the people who are getting these benefits actually qualify for it. what we have our ways that people have learned to gain the system. for example, the categorical

eligibility were people getting certain kind of benefits can't increase benefits whether they have applied for food stamps or not -- can increase benefits whether they have applied for food stamps or not. deople who were working an paying their bills, we want to be good stewards of their money. we want to make sure that people who could be working or trying to transition off of food stamps are actually working in that direction. these are common sense things. this does not take food away from people who need it. host: shouldn't the states be allowed to decide who qualifies for food stamps? guest: in some ways they do that. but what happens is that it is a partnership. states try to use various tools that would allow the federal government's portion to be more than the state's portion. we are trying to do the right thing here. what is fair and equitable in

the situation and make sure the people who need the benefits get them and make sure. host: are you going to insist on that $40 billion figure? guest: i am more interested in the policy. we really don't know how much savings any of these policy issues are going to actually bring. this is an estimate by the congressional budget office. what i am interested in is commonsense policy. host: reports from yesterday's meeting say that the two sides might settle at $10 billion in savings of the food stamp program. is that a number you could live with? guest: i want to go back with what i said a while ago. i am more interested in the policy that the house and senate are going to agree to. i think you can get hung up on the number, but i do want to that people just because they qualify for one program, they are not automatically qualified for food

stamps. i do think it is important that able-bodied people be looking states ared that the verifying that. those are programs i would like to see included in whatever farm bill we have. host: what are the odds that a farm bill gets past? guest: i think they are good. i don't think they will get passed before december 31 which is unfortunate. but i think we are closing in soon and over the holidays we could begin to get the language drafted and hopefully come back after the first of the year and get the bill passed. host: is the 31st or deadline? you will go past or deadline? guest: the farm bill is already expired. we are operating under an expired farm bill. the good news is that all of the crop programs are covered for this year. people are getting their benefits. what happens after the first of the year, farmers and ranchers across the country will begin to

plan for next year's crop -- they need to know what the rules of the game are going to be. host: that brings up commodity groups. there was a story recently that there has been intense lobbying threatening the farm bill. the commodity groups, corn growers, sugar folks, soybean folks warring against each other. -- this is notte helping to get a farm bill. i did not have this in 2008. attitude among the commodity groups seems to be lineup and shoot. guest: i think one of the things everyone is concerned about is making sure we get a farm bill that covers all of the various crops. lucas' what chairman goal has been through the whole process. we cannot have a farm bill for some farmers, we need a farm bill for all farmers. host: explain what is going on for people who do not know.

guest: when they look at this new safety net, we are doing away with direct payments. that is a major reform. host: direct payments to farmers. guest: we are going to more of an insurance-like scenario. what people want to make sure of is that this new safety net is going to provide an actual safety net for them. people want the safety net to be based on income. some people wanted to be based on price of the commodity. what we have been working to do is to try to put something together that meets everybody's needs. i don't think everybody will be happy. generally, a good bill is when not everyone felt like they got their way, but the bottom line is that we did get a good safety net. host: this is a key sticking point for negotiations. explained to people who do not know farm language how much this means in taxpayer dollars. the commodity portion.

guest: the commodity portion is about 20% of the farm bill. the food stamps is about 80% of the farm bill. this farm bill, over a 10 year. nearly $1d, is trillion. we are talking about in the neighborhood of $200 billion over 10 years. host: what farmers do you represent? guest: grain, cotton, peanuts, livestock. we have people who are growing vegetables in my district. i have a very farm-oriented congressional district. host: let's get to phone calls. kathryn in ohio. democrat. caller: good morning. i am so happy to hear you say that you want to make sure that people qualify. i want to see people qualify.

earn noher of three can more than $13,000 to receive a underrogram, i do not, any circumstances, want to see a farmer or an act company who makes billions were trillions of aslars get anything from me a taxpayer. my husband we find ourselves the working poor. i am tired as an american seeing my tax dollars going to a rich man and a small child does without. you say he or she is obese. children eat rice, beans, spaghetti. shame on you. you should be a christian american. idol this meshes goes out --

out.ope this message goes now i see rich, white man act like you. shame on you. host: let's get a response. guest: i appreciate the comments. she wants to make sure these families that are in need will get the benefits. that is a lot of families are struggling and they are paying their taxes. they ask to make sure that people qualify for the benefits. the farm bill is basically a safety net for adverse weather conditions. there are some things that happened to farmers that are not under their control. many of the farmers are just

farm families, second and third generation. is big business. host: you have more family farms than big business forms? guest: oh, yes. they are determined to do business as a corporation. when you come to my district, you find people farming and a lot of acres. but that is generally a farm family. a husband and wife and maybe sons and daughters are all contributing to the farm family. they have invested hundreds of thousands of dollars to put into developing a crop. sometimes mother nature is not kind to them. much loansin how farmers have to take out for

equipment. the farmers need certainty going into next year. why is that? guest: the tractor it takes to farm a big farm today. it could cost anywhere from $150,000 to $200,000. then the fertilizer and some people are irrigating and putting chemicals down. many of these farmers and ranchers in my district maybe borrowing hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars just to hope to make a profit. host: does the bank say i will give you the loan if there is some certainty with what is going on in washington? guest: the banker wants his money back whether it rains over a dozen rain, whether there is a

drought or not a drought. the farm bill provide some certainty of what is reasonable to expect if things go bad, the former can still pay the loan back. host: this from twitter. guest: i do not know anything about members receiving millions of dollars. members of congress come from all over the united states and some come from farm families. the thing that people keep using the word "cutting" on food stamps. we are not cutting benefits for people who qualify. have anto make sure we efficient system here. and making sure they qualify for them. host: clarence on washington state. caller: good morning.

can you explain to me how cutting the total amount of resources available to the food stamp program does not negatively impact the goals you say are needed. it doesn't do anything to remove the waste, fraud, and abuse. don't you think by leaving the total amount of money alone and directly your efforts toward the waste, fraud, and abuse, it would assure the money is being spent? guest: good question. another misinformation out there. the food stamp program is a mandatory program. whatever benefits that people qualify for, that amount of money would be expended.

we are talking about making sure everybody receiving those benefits qualifies for it and making sure folks experiencing a temporary bump in the road are making progress to transition off of food stamps. people who could be doing part- time work, we want to make sure they are doing that. that is in their best interest in the long-term. benefit toot cut any anyone who is eligible. jones" says every five dollars of food stamps generates up to nine dollars in economic activity. guest: what we want to do is we

do not want an economy based on how much benefits the government is passing out. we want a government that is efficient and effective. we want an efficient and effective program for our farmers and for families in need. offeconomy would be better if all of these people did not have to be on food stamps. we need to get an economy that is creating jobs and opportunities for those families. making sure we're helping those families. host: republican caller from tampa. hi, burt. caller: thank you. you're on the committee which oversees the institute of theards, why would you --

building was in freefall for over 100 feet and was destroyed -- host: there is an organized group that are calling into our show and others to question the investigation of the 911 attacks, this group thinking it wasn't adequate enough from the 9/11 attack.- the guest: 9/11 was a terrible event. we did not think those holdings would fall down. i am not familiar with what the caller is referring to. have, underndards constant review as we learn more and more.

we're learning more about how we designed buildings to be more terrorist-adverse, and that is probably something we should be doing. host: david in michigan. hi, david. caller: good morning. stuff, weoing to cut need to concentrate on the military. i think of the food stamp program, and was designed to help children with nutritional problems. children in the south were not getting fed up early. how are we going to get the children working to make sure they are qualified to get food stamps? this is about feeding kids. we need to stop giving money to the rich farmers. any of the things being

proposed in the senate or the not aboutbout -- is taking food away from people who qualify. if we do not curb some of this hase, this program exponentially increased in cost. we are spending money we do not have. i owe a responsibility to everybody in this country to make sure we are doing these programs effectively. host: we have this on the second point. guest: no. this farm bill is designed to be for every farmer, whether you are 100 acres or 2000 acres.

we have tried to put together a farm bill that is good for american forms no matter what size it is. no. we have farmers fail all the time in our economy. none of these programs rewards people that cannot farm well. we do not want a program that rewards farmers that cannot farm well. farmers that provide the safest and cheapest food in the world to american and global families. host: independent caller is up next. caller: i am so angry. i was born into a family that had nothing. when we were kids we had to do without. their our children in this country that are doing without food in their stomachs.

there mother has to go to work. there is no work for some of these women. they are trying to raise their family. of food and cat food. you eat steak dinners. you have already cut. you are not telling the truth. host: there is a piece about the snap program. it expired. about $40 writes -- less each month to feed a family of four. one of the things you

have to understand is the history. the food stamps was part of the stimulus and was designed to let inflation match back up. to movecrats decided the expiration date to pay for some other stimulus programs they felt was more important. they kept moving that date back. 1 when it was september that went into effect. enough,sn't it been cut the food stamps? guest: that is where everybody is missing the point. we are not cutting the benefits. there is not one cut other than what the democrats did with moving the stimulus number back. we just want to make sure

everybody on the program, we are doing everything we can to make sure they qualify. if you are not eligible, you do not get it. should you have been on it if you were not eligible? stampsare receiving food and you do not qualify for it, how do i explain that to the people who are working hard? they are doing everything they can to make sure they feed their family. some people on food stamps do not qualify for the program. host: 47 million americans are on right now. if the $40 billion number goes through, if that is what you safe from making it harder to get food stands, how many less people? guest: we do not know. i am more interested in the

policy. i do not know what the numbers will be. these are cbo estimates. youou are on food stamps, ought to have to qualify for them. you arehn in georgia, on the air with randy neugebauer , republican of texas. negotiating over a five-year farm bill. caller: good morning. year math, $4 billion a out of almost $80 billion a year program. that is about 6%. isee people every day -- need a cab --that do not food stamps that make more money than i do. charge moreds to

prices than grocery stores. it is amazing. every day i see this. i do not take food stamps. i made $15,000 last year. i do not believe in taking something i do not need from other people. i kind of consider that stealing. we spent $18 billion a year on food stamps and now we are spending $80 billion? i wonder how many votes that is buying. i heard one of the biggest fallacies ever told repeated once again by the president yesterday, trickle-down economics. a quick assessment of the so- called job creation in this recovery. $7.8 million. go back 30 years ago.

1982, wember of created 11.5 million jobs. look it up. guest: thank you, john. he is out there working, doing the right thing. he wants to make sure people receiving food stamps need those benefits and qualify for them. i think that is a fair thing. host: talk about the numbers he gave. guest: i do know in the last seven or eight years, food stamps has almost doubled in this country. and the numbers are right. rs.se are 10-year numbe about $80 billion ticket. host: ay year. guest: we are talking about less

than 5% reduction in those benefits. maybe there are some people that do not qualify. host: we have a tweet from monty. guest: it just varies. it depends on what part of the country and what kind of crop. we have vegetable farmers with a higher value crop. an average farm is in the 2000- acre range. they are planting multiple crops, maybe cotton and peanuts. these are farm families. florida.d in tampa, caller: how are you today? host: good morning. caller: why is the government

giving out subsidies to farmers -- host: why is the government giving it subsidies to farmers to not grow food? guest: we have made some reforms in this farm bill. we used to have direct payments. they were paid to farmers whether they planted anything or not. we have in the minute it that program. i think we have moved the ball in the right direction. we are not paying farmers -- host: does that include the conservation program? guest: they are designed to make sure some soils, we not produce those areas because of erosion in the soil, many people feel like it is not the best for the conservation of that area.

host: so that still exists? guest: that is right. we have set aside these acres. we have asked them not to create a crop form. a certain amount of money for not growing that crop on that land. host: congressman neugebauer, thank you so much for talking with our viewers. we will talk to hakeem jeffries of new york about the budget deal, possible budget deal between house and senate conferees. time.0 eastern reports say paul ryan and patty murray are nearing an agreement on a budget deal that would raise spending to about $1

trillion. looking to replace some automatic spending cuts set to start in january. republicans would agree to more federal spending, steps that could avoid another government shutdown next year. workers expected to walk off their jobs and the protests have begun in detroit. dozens of demonstrators have lined up outside a mcdonald's restaurant protesting what one forcalled "slave wages" fast food wages. raising pay to $15 an hour. are also expected to join workers on the strike lines. that a gunman has

killed a u.s. citizen in benghazi. the person was working at a school. those are some of the latest headlines on c-span radio. >> c-span. we bring public affairs events from washington directly to you, putting you in the room at congressional hearings, white house events, briefings, and conferences, and offering complete gavel-to-gavel coverage of the u.s. house, all as a public service of private industry. we're c-span, created by the cable tv industry 34 years ago and funded by your local cable or satellite provider. and now, you can watch us in h.d. the kansas city star was rated more in favor of reform than all of the other major newspapers in the united states combined. as nelson told an interviewer,

"i do not want the editorials to be a lot of literary essays. i want to get things done." he followed up with an editorial in the "star" that rejected the builder- he is a recall to his work rather than a man on horseback. after his arrival from africa, talk about his candidacy. napoleone clubs like in the spring of 1910. >> the impact on the american progressive movement to win back the white house, sunday on c- span three american history tv. "washington journal" continues. we want to welcome back to

the program hakeem jeffries, sit on the wedges committee. --sits on the budget committee. congress near to a budget deal. what do you know? ryan: i know that chairman and chairwoman mary have been working along with the other members of the conference committee to arrive at an agreement, which is what congress should be doing. we need to increase or reduce the harmful impacts of the sequester, as it relates to what took place this year and what will take place next year. host: to get rid of the automatic spending cuts. the latest iteration of talks has involved pension guarantees and other measures.

host: what do you make of these initial offerings? guest: i think that the use of the question is one we should take a closer look at. i do not support the notion we should -- forcing them to pay more into the pension system. these are employees who have suffered a significant amount since the collapse of the economy. their pay has been frozen. they just went through a government shutdown. they were furloughed. and i think the american people significant the presence of these government employees are in terms of

maintaining the quality of life for america. host: if this is what you are offered, are you a yes vote? thet: i will take a look at balance of ideas that make it into the agreement. the democratic whip and others have expressed opposition to the notion of balancing the budget on the back of federal employees. there has got to be compromise and balance on both sides. we will take a look at the user fee question. i have not seen specifics and members will have to look at specifics before we decide how we are going to vote. host: a grand bargain this is not, according to politico.

certainly leave aside any extension of unemployment benefits, a fix to the formula by which doctors get reinforced for treating medicare patients, and a boost in the federal minimum wage. guest: certainly i think it is a step in the right direction. we have been doing government by continuing resolution. that does not provide the certainty we deserve. the recovery has been slower than it should be. regular order, some measure of certainty in terms of the outlook for funding the government is a meaningful step in the right direction. that is a grand bargain that should not include things like decimating the social safety

net. some may view the fact the absence of a grand bargain which would perhaps include things that are untenable for many in the congress and out in america is not necessarily a bad thing. host: you would be on board with not extending unemployment benefits? guest: we have had a very schizophrenic economic recovery. the stock market is way up. productivity of the american people is up. the corporate buffett's are up -- the corporate profits are up. consumer demand is still stagnant. and a lot of americans have not found meaningful employment. i am not prepared to say that would be a decisive issue. host: if both sides cannot come

to a deal, is reported that john boehner would put forward a continuing resolution to keep the government running to avoid another government shutdown. steny hoyer has said the democrats would vote for that. --would not vote for that. guest: i share steny hoyer's concerns, particularly if the numbers are less than desirable as relates to providing the american people with the level of services they deserve. the number that speaker boehner what contemplate may be as low currentbillion, the sequestration number. that is unacceptable and not something i could support. host: phone calls.

paul is up first. caller: good morning. i want yought here, to hold him accountable for every word that comes out of his mouth. back. -- call him i have been watching this for a long time. when you say i will not negotiate -- it was not the republicans. it was the president who denied all the veterans access to the memorial, which is disgraceful to the veterans of this country that fought for all of us. on the job deal, i am not agreeing to nothing. you can turn around and blame it on the republicans.

host: let's get a response. guest: i think everybody in the congress would like to see an agreement to avoid the type of shutdown that cost the american people $24 billion in terms of lost productivity. as it relates to who bears blame, i do not think it makes sense to go back into past history. the government shutdown resulted because of intransigence by many in the house who were determined to destroy or defund the affordable care act. they decided to shut the government down. host: larry is up next. caller: yes. i would like to make a little point. the last gentleman that was on, mr. neugebauer, talking about cutting food stamps -- i am

looking at his picture. he voted to cut $40 billion from the food stamp program. republicansf the who lined his pockets with subsidies. another one here. host: where do you see the farm subsidy for him? what site? caller: just a moment. host: we have moved on from that conversation. it is randy neugebauer, republican from texas. the food stamp program is a huge part of that. if the sides settle on a number, $10 billion in savings over 10 years, would that be too much for you? the $40 billion

in cuts to the snap program is untenable. you have 50 million people who are hungry in america. over 16 million are children. this is the richest country in the world. we should not allow anyone to go to bed hungry. now, it is possible there is some savings that could be made. $6 senate bill is about billion in cuts to the program. that is excessive for many in the democratic party. we exist in a divided government context and some common ground is going to have to be found. the number has to be less than $40 billion. host: john boehner said it is the senate democrats that are holding up the budget deal and the farm bill.

[video clip] 150he house has passed bills that the senate has failed to act on. many of them would help our economy and boost job creation. to be actedills yet on by the senate. these bills would increase the supply of american energy and build the keystone pipeline, rollback regulations, provide more flexibility, to working families reform job-training programs, protect americans from cyber attacks, keep the best teachers, delay the individual mandate, the american people to keep the health care plans that they like. every single one of these bills has been blocked by washington democrats.

the senate and president continue to stand in the way of priorities.s chairman ryan and chairman lucas have made serious efforts to senate democrats. when will they learn to say yes to common ground? when will they start listening to the american people? host: your response. guest: i think the rhetoric sounds nice but the reality is different. the house majority has passed bills that are extreme in nature that take a my way or the highway approach and send them over to the senate bills they know are dead on arrival. we need a willingness to compromise. the democrats are willing to find common ground. we will not agree to the extreme measures that paul ryan passed

through the house. that budget document suggested we cut $168 out of higher education spending. it turned medicare into a voucher program. a proposed cutting $820 billion out of the medicaid program. it would affect people on disability. these are extreme measures. they are not proposals acceptable to democrats. the process we are undertaking will hopefully arrive at a situation where we get an agreement that is reflective of the priorities of trying to create progress for everyone in america. if we can find that common ground, the republicans will find willing partners in democrats in the house and the senate. from we have this tweet

dedi. ron tweets in the sequester has created $85 billion in spending cuts randomly spread out throughout the economy in a manner that has cost americans hundreds of thousands of jobs at a time when we need to continue to recover for the americans who are still suffering. that targetedze spending cuts is a far more preferable way to reduce our expenditures in this country then randomly generated spending cuts spread across areas that are counterproductive. that was the experience in

europe where austerity measures were put in after the economy collapsed and made the situation worse. we cannot repeat that mistake here in america. host: hi, tj. caller: good morning. i have a comment and a complement, greta, for you. you are questioning the representative from texas. you clearly revealed how he was lying about the food stamp cuts and budget. i have to compliment you on your question of him. you reveal that in him. g aresentative, you are doin very good job. guest: thank you very much. host: we will go on to derek. caller: good morning. i thought i could not believe

what i heard from the congressman from new york. but i should not be shocked. you talk about public employers will have to contribute more to their pension program. you said that you think it should be a balanced approach. balanced approach. here is the deal. a year. $180,000 what is the nationally recognized poverty income level? make $17rst of all, i 4,000 a year, but who is counting? this is an important debate that we are having. for a family of four, is a little over $20,000.

that is not something that is acceptable. we can have a debate as it relates to the poverty line. i do not believe the increase in is employee contribution appropriate at this moment in time. you: susan from tennessee, are on the air with hakeem jeffries. go ahead. susan? caller: yes, hello. my name is susan. i wanted to let you know -- i run an apartment complex in tennessee. there is so much that is going on in congress. we are leaving a total mess for our kids and grandkids. all these freebies the democrats

want to give out -- medicaid, food stamp. they should come up with a i.d.r -- picture have ahis go on -- i huge apartment complex in national. i see this go on and on and on. they will sell food stamp cards to get drugs. who is watching this? i agree that they should have a program for the people that are the disabled after the people who cannot help themselves. host: congressman randy neugebauer made the argument we are not cutting from people. we are trying to make it

eligible for people who need it. right now there are too many people that do not need the assistance. guest: there is no evidence to suggest that. approximately 50 million americans either go to bed hungry or in a situation where they don't have the nutritional access to food that they need. that is a problematic fact. the situation was made worse after the collapse of the economy. a significant number of americans have needed to seek out assistance from the government in the context of the food stamp program, officially known as snap. i think that is a hand-up, not necessarily a handout. we should try and ensure everybody has the greatest opportunity for success as possible. host: what do you make of

president obama's speech yesterday/ ? his family has received assistance from the government throughout the years in order for them to get ahead. guest: there are countless numbers of americans who at some point have received assistance from the government, even if that was a federally guaranteed student loan. fees are vehicles to provide access to a better way of life, not meant to be a permanent crutch but a stepping stone. tois important for people point that out. host: yet the deficit is a problem. k stone.this from mar guest: i think tax expenditures

is a big problem. there are tax revenues that we should be taking in which we are not because we are subsidizing a significant amount of what some have termed corporate welfare. billions of dollars to the oil and gas industry, they are making record profits. the tax expenditures are costing the american people in ways that are problematic. host: what would you cut the besides defense? guest: revenues that we have lost that would otherwise should take in. other than defense, there is waste and inefficiencies in a wide range of domestic spending programs. i am willing to take a look at almost everything. i think the demonization of

social security and medicaid are inappropriate. they are not responsible for the deficit problem we have right now. ronald reagan in a debate with walter mondo and clear social security has nothing to do with the deficit. it was true then and it is true now. att in plano, texas. caller: thank you for taking my call. food stamps is not one of the areas that needs to be cut. it is only $80 billion a year. is nothing. the area of the budget that needs to be cut are medicare and social security. those are the largest areas of the budget.

he onlythe budget -- t way you get to a sound budget going forward, you have to be willing to cut the areas where we spent the most. anst: the caller makes important observation. we have to take a look at health care expenditures in this country. connected to the two democratic realities. americans are living longer. that is a good thing. that will result on increase pressure on health care costs in this country. there is an increased and the number of older americans. there is a significant cost burden and pressure on the government and our economy as it relates to health care expenditures. we have to look at some light to deal with that in the context of

medicare. host: what would you like to see done? guest: i do think there are efficiencies that could be found in terms of the payouts to certain providers that are not merited on the facts. look atto take a hard the manner in which we deal with the cost of medicare moving forward. it will have to be made and done in the context of other areas of the budget. there is a demographic reality confront ase has to it relates to the increased pressure on the medicare program. dawn is up next. caller: i have three things to say. 2006 when the republicans

controlled everything, they passed the free trade bill with china. you cannot shift millions of jobs to china and not know we are going to lose trillions in tax revenues and become a third world country. we need to renegotiate the trade deals and if obama goes along with the republicans on this transpacific partnership, he is no better than they are. since they will not compromise unless it means helping the rich, the tea party and the house controls things. i think the sequester is the only will realistic way you have of cutting the debt a little bit. we need to renegotiate the trade deals. that is the problem. guest: i have concerns as it relates to the transpacific

partnership deal. is not clear the free trade agreements that have been passed into law have resulted in a net benefit for the american people in terms of job creation. host: let me get your thoughts on the front page of "the washington post" this morning on a story that broke overnight. what do you make of this? guest: there is significant nsaern with activity the , week after week, month after month. the judiciary committee has expressed significant interest in this issue. we have to find the right balance between protecting americans and dealing with our national security, given the growing threat of terrorists

across the world who want to destroy the united states as it currently exists. 1. saw in new york during 9/1 we have to make sure we protect the civil liberties that are important to this country and the civil liberties that are important to the fabric of our nation as communicated to us by the founding fathers of this great country. this recent revelation should raise additional concerns and requires significant scrutiny in the senate and the house on the nsa's activities, perhaps as a leakers are to try to reign them in. host: according to "the washington post," what they are doing is legal. guest: we have to revisit the

patriot act. when it is time to reauthorize that act, we have to look at whether congress went too far in giving the nsa the authority. host: two of the authors have .eamed up patrick leahy has legislation to deal with this. do you support their bill? guest: i do think we have gone too far. it wasn't in the congress when the patriot act was signed into law. we are dealing with a new threat in america that struck our shores in a painful way. we do have to strike the appropriate balance.

indicated, there is the need to roll back some of the activity we have authorized. host: patrick leahy talked about his legislation he has drafted with the former chairman. you can go to our website if you're interested, www.c- span.org. kim, democratic caller. hi, kim. caller: i am bringing it back to the budget deadline approaching and a compromise we are looking for in all of our representatives. i would like to remind republicans that democrats system andngle-payer we did compromise and we did open up the private insurance companies having the exchanges to sell their policies. when they ask us to compromise

and we do, they seem to forget. i would like to, that your an extremely well spoken person and i think you have a successful career ahead of yourself representing us in washington, d.c. stand strong. get the democrats out to vote. we need more time. 2016ed another democrat in to fulfill these platforms that we have wanted for our country. guest: thank you for your observations. there is an important point that you made. the current spending level that was done on october 16 in the form of the continuing resolution was $936 billion.

that includes a significant amount of spending cuts for a wide variety of domestic programs that many democrats support. headstart, long-term unemployment, meals on wheels, housing vouchers. that represents a significant compromise. is democratic proposal $1,050,000,000,000. the sequester number is 967 billion dollars. the number represents a significant compromise. even if an agreement is reached, it increases the amount of money used to fund the government on the discretionary side, it will not reach that $1 trillion number. we are prepared to compromise. hopefully our friends are prepared to copper mines and find common ground.

host: a little about about congress jeffries. he is serving in his first term. served in the state assembly for six years. has a bachelors degree from the state university of new york and a law degree. hi, robert. you are on the air. caller: thank you for having me. good morning. they always want to cut social security. they want to balance the budget on the poor people's backs. other crutches, sending money to israel, saudi arabia, china. all our money is going abroad. we do not want to cut the money going to these countries. host: foreign aid.

guest: the united states plays an important role in terms of the world stage. the sequestration cuts to result in the reduction in foreign aid spending to our strong allies like israel and others, turkey, jordan and other allies across the country. that is problematic. foreign aid is a relatively small percentage of the overall budget in the united states of america and something that should be preserved. we have to focus on domestic priorities as are relates to -- it has been a schizophrenic recovery. people are suffering all over the country. democrats, republicans. congress should come together to deal with the problems we face in this country.

we cannot ignore the place we have in this world. host: paul. we have a few minutes left. the house is in early. caller: a few years ago it was recorded that chuck schumer called up the democrat leadership and said anything republicans put out you would call it extreme and everything else that is bad under the sun. the only ones that do not copper mines are harry reid and the so- called president we got. they say there is no compromise. democrats are the ones that shot the government down, not the republicans. you need to compromise with republicans also. not just republicans compromising with you. guest: i agree with that last sentiment. everybody needs to find common

ground. something the democrats have been prepared to do. think about senator schumer. there was an agreement reached with republicans and democrats. rubior mccain and senator were closely to try to arrive at a product that made sense for america. i do think we are prepared to compromise and i hope that spirit will take hold. the shutdown was extreme and unnecessary. the facts speak for themselves. i am hopeful we will reach a budget agreement that works for the american people. host: you mentioned the bipartisan agreement on the senate. the house speaker announce they have hired one of senator mccain's top aides on

immigration. she is now going to be part of the office and advising him on immigration. do you think that is a positive sign? guest: a positive sign. we have more than 11 million undocumented individuals who live in this country who should be part of the mainstream to the extent we can create a pathway to citizenship, that is tough is tough butthat fair, that make sure people can pursue gainful employment and make sure no one has a serious criminal record. you have 11 million undocumented immigrants. you can engage in mass deportation. the status quote is

unacceptable. or you can pursue copperheads of immigration reform. that is the course that is most effective. host: do you agree with the president? is the course that is most appropriate. >> do you agree with the president when he says that the only way to get it done is by step-by-step? the day, ind of think it is important for a bill to be brought to the floor of the house of representatives and frost to find something that can be passed at conference committee. for talking with us. the houses in early for session. virginia foxx to act as speaker pro tempore on this day. signed, john a. boehner, speaker of the house of representatives.